Quaternary glaciation

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/quaternary-glaciation

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific epoch?Pleistocene and Holocene epochs of the Quaternary Period
2. What is the initiation date?Approximately 2.58 million years before present
3. How do ice sheets affect the Earth's surface during glacial periods?Huge ice sheets scrape the land, leaving behind features like fjords, moraines, and drumlins. They also press down the Earth's crust, which later rebounds when the ice melts.
4. Why do sea levels rise and fall during glacial and interglacial periods?When ice sheets grow, water is stored in ice and sea level drops by more than 100 meters. When the ice melts, the water returns to the oceans and sea level rises again.

Quaternary glaciation: The current ice age, characterized by recurring glacial and interglacial periods spanning the last 2.58 million years.
Milankovitch cycles: Long-term variations in Earth's orbital parameters that influence the amount and distribution of solar radiation reaching the planet.
Isostatic adjustment: The vertical movement of the Earth's crust in response to changes in the load upon it, such as the melting of massive ice sheets.
Albedo: The measure of how much solar radiation is reflected by a surface; ice and snow have high albedo, contributing to cooling.